What clues help you to infer what the unnamed celebration was? When were you certain?
Compare the treatment of the Old in the community to their treatment in the family scene Jonas receives as a memory. In your opinion, which shows more care and respect for the aged? Explain your thinking.
Do you agree with Jonas that living the way they did in the memory was dangerous? Why or why not?
What provokes Jonas’s first lie to his parents?
Why does Jonas need to learn the joy of being an individual (special, unique, and proud)?
Chapter 17
How are Jonas’s feelings different from his family’s feelings?
How is Jonas’s reaction to the children’s game of war a turning point in Jonas’s experience?
What does father’s certainty about the birthday of the twins reveal about how births are handled in the community?
Everyone seems to accept the idea of releasing a twin simply because it’s a twin in a matter of fact way. How do you feel about this attitude?
Chapter 18
1. Who was Rosemary and what happened to her? Do you think she was brave or cowardly? Why?
Contrast The Giver’s feelings for Jonas with Mother’s and Father’s feelings for Jonas.
What do you think The Giver means when he says ,”Memories are forever”?
What do you think The Giver is thinking about when the narrator says that he is “obviously thinking”?
Why is The Receiver’s job so important in the community? What should happen if The Receiver should die?
Chapter 19
What shocked Jonas when he viewed his father “releasing” one of the newborn twins?
When did you realize what the word “release” means? What clues helped you to come to that conclusion?
What did Jonas learn about the community’s prohibition (rule) against lying?
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19